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A behaviour-based pain scale for horses with acute colic: scale construction.
Gila Abells Sutton1, Roee Dahan, Dan Turner
1Koret School of Veterinary Medicine-Veterinary Teaching Hospital, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Robert H. Smith Faculty of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences, POB 12, Rehovot 76100, Israel. sutton@agri.huji.ac.il
Veterinary Journal (London, England : 1997)
|November 13, 2012
Summary
Researchers developed two equine acute abdominal pain scales (EAAPS) to objectively measure colic severity in horses. These validated tools aid veterinarians in effectively managing equine pain and improving patient outcomes.
Area of Science:
- Veterinary Science
- Animal Behavior
- Pain Management
Background:
- Effective management of equine colic requires a validated tool to assess pain severity.
- Current methods may lack objectivity in quantifying pain in horses experiencing acute abdominal distress.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop and describe two novel, behavior-based equine acute abdominal pain scales (EAAPS) for clinical use.
- To utilize a combination of mathematical and judgmental approaches in scale construction for enhanced accuracy.
Main Methods:
- Two scales were created using mathematical identification of pain behaviors and expert opinion for weighting.
- Thirty equine practitioners assessed pain in 23 video clips using a visual analogue scale (VAS) and behavior checklists.
- A Delphi process with six veterinarians refined items, leading to the final EAAPS scales incorporating 12 behaviors.
Main Results:
- Nine behaviors demonstrated low bias and good inter-observer agreement.
- The developed equine acute abdominal pain scales (EAAPS-1 and EAAPS-2) include 12 specific behaviors.
- EAAPS-1 assigns a single weight per behavior, while EAAPS-2 uses gradations based on frequency.
Conclusions:
- The EAAPS scales represent the first clinimetrically developed tools for assessing acute colic pain severity in horses.
- These scales are designed for practical clinical application, offering a more objective measure of equine pain.
- Further validation studies are ongoing to confirm the efficacy and reliability of the EAAPS scales.
